As Trump’s Tariffs Jilt American Farmers & Consumers, His Proposed Bailout Could Make Things Worse

WASHINGTON, DC - In a dubious effort to try and soften the blow to farmers negatively impacted by President Donald Trump's unilateral tariff taxes and reckless trade war maneuvers, the White House is planning a $12 billion farm aid package.

According to news reports, much of the U.S. taxpayer funded aid -- $11 billion -- will be distributed in one time payments to major row crop farmers as a part of what the Trump Administration is calling "bridge" payments. The remaining $1 billion will go toward producers of fruits, vegetables, and other specialty crops.

Today, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) issued the following statement:

"President Trump's tariffs are making things more expensive for average Americans. On the world stage, he's become an unreliable partner to our allies and an unstable force for trade. As a result, he's raising prices for consumers, undermining economic growth and holding back job creation and economic investment in the Grain Belt and across the country. Now, like an arsonist-firefighter who ignites a blaze in order to ride to the 'so-called rescue,' he is once again touting a bailout for farmers due to the financial catastrophe and market losses his chaotic policies created.

"President Trump's 'farmageddon' tariff taxes have absolutely hammered family farmers by raising their costs and shrinking their foreign markets. His own Agriculture Department projects that U.S. crop receipts will hit an 18-year low this year, driven in large part by a Chinese boycott of American soybeans during this year's trade war. This half-baked bailout scheme to unequally return a fraction of the funds Trump's tariffs took from farmers and consumers is likely to be unevenly distributed and further distort the market. Instead of helping farmers and allowing them to compete on an even playing field, it could end up prolonging and exacerbating the economic downturn for rural America. The Trump Administration will pick winners and losers and small family farmers are the ones most likely to lose out while big agribusinesses and wealthy landowners cash-in. Our farmers want a chance to work and trade, not rely on more government aid.

"Meanwhile, American consumers are left paying higher prices and get no relief. The president should work with Congress to help make things easier for farmers, not harder. Instead of turning America's grain belt into a rust belt, we need to win back customers for U.S. grown crops, not raise prices and make America less competitive.

"The House should join the Senate in passing legislation that reins in Trump's reckless tariffs and the Supreme Court should make it clear the president has totally overstepped his bounds and exceeded his authority by imposing these sweeping and unjust import taxes."

The U.S. Supreme Court could rule as soon as this month on the validity of the Trump Administration's so-called 'emergency tariffs.' President Trump invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to levy blanket tariffs on goods from other countries. But Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government with oversight of taxation and spending -- not the president and the executive branch.

The U.S. Senate has repeatedly voted on a bipartisan basis to reject Trump's tariffs and support resolutions to terminate Trump's misuse of emergency powers to enact steep tariffs on American consumers.

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